TE KARAKA - Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu

Hui-ā-Iwi 2022

The excitement was barely contained on the Saturday morning of Hui-ā-Iwi as whānau began arriving early, waiting outside Te Hapa o Niu Tireni, ready for the pōwhiri. Thankfully, the sun replaced expected rain as proceedings began. Later, kaumātua met
in the kai marquee for a long overdue kapu tī and kōrero while the stalls opened for business and whānau geared up for early Christmas shopping. There was a great range of food on offer from donuts, burgers and salmon bagels to more traditional kai Māori such as īnaka fritters, fry bread and an umu.

The world of virtual story telling

There is a story wrapped around every taonga pūoro, and what we did was create an experience where you could meet the pūtōrino and hear its voice. We got to be in the presence of Hineraukatauri, the atua of flute music. It was such a cool experience to work with Māori choreographers, musicians, composers and 3D modellers.

Lest we forget the medals and memories

At the end of World War II, service medals were awarded to the soldiers who served in the 28th Māori Battalion. Not all, however, made it into the hands of the recipients at the time. Seventy-seven years later, they are finally making their way into the hands of their descendants.

Review

I had probably seen moko kauae in books and on television, but they seemed like relics from a world that I did not know. When I was at university, I told some Pākehā friends in the pub that when I turned twenty-one, I would have to follow whānau tradition and get my moko.